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US private equity firms Cerberus Partners and Providence Equity Partners are reportedly preparing a bid for Vodafone Group's Japanese mobile subsidiary, which could value the business at $15bn (â¬12.4bn).

The Wall Street Journal reports today that the pair are near to securing financing for an offer, which would pit them against a €11.6bn ($14bn) bid already on the table from Japanese internet conglomerate Softbank. The newspaper cites sources familiar with the matter.

A person close to Cerberus and Providence told the paper that, despite stiff competition from Japan's largest mobile phone group NTT DoCoMo, the Vodafone subsidiary has "a well-established foothold in the Japanese market, a quality brand, and good cash-flow".

However, sources told the newspaper raising credit for what would be the country's largest leveraged buy-out is proving difficult.

Providence took control of German cable group Kabel Deutschland in December in a deal that valued the company at €3.4bn. It also bought Swedish operator Com Hem for €1.2bn in November, alongside rival private equity house The Carlyle Group.

Cerberus last year led a consortium that took control of troubled Seibu Railway in a deal worth $1.4bn.

Vodafone, Softbank and the buy-out firms declined to comment to The Wall Street Journal.